The consumer landscape in China is a minefield of fakes, misleading ads and tainted products. But shoppers have become smarter at working out the Nukes from Nikes. When trust is low in brands, media and even your next door neighbour, how can a society regain its faith?

The postman’s hardly left your door before you rip open the package to get at your new designer bag. And it feels like Christmas until a feeling of dread starts to creep in. Telltale signs reveal that the bag is a fake. Unfortunately for Chinese shoppers, this scene is all too familiar.

Brands from around the world are keen to appeal to China's evolving middle market. But what do Chinese people want from foreign brands, and how do they choose between them? We spoke to marketing professor Lily Dong to find out.

Mobile phone imitations in China are a response to the massive local demand for cheap mobile functionality. This lucrative market is called ‘shanzhai’, and has resulted in brands such as as Nkia, Blockberry and Svmsung.